Need advice - How to live Non-Electrically

[bosr]

Just a thought, but would it be practical to build a still for making alcohol and using that to power your generator and such?

Alcohol Can Be A Gas

Originally Posted by bosr

Just a thought, but would it be practical to build a still for making alcohol and using that to power your generator and such?

Alcohol Can Be A Gas

I've done extensive research in this area and have a ton
of stuff on the topic including the plans to Robert Warren's Charles 803 reflux still.

I've not done anything with it - yet.

Alcohol is just another energy storage medium. It works.
Problem is, it takes energy input from some source to concentrate the ethanol to the point of being useful as
a fuel for an internal combustion engine (E-85 or higher)

This takes heat. Either solar or from some other source.

Biodiesel would make more sense in the long run. I'd do it in a heartbeat if I had 100 acres of rape seed and an oil press.

Instead of going to the trouble of making the ethanol why not just build a woodgas generator. It would take
the same amount of effort and would be functional faster.

Ultimately you are always converting light/heat from the
sun into some other form which is usable by your machines. One day perhaps we can be efficient enough
to use the sun's output directly in an efficient way.

Storing the energy from the sun for when you need it is the key. Hold that thought, and remember the name
Daniel Nocera!

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